Back to back win for Emma Pallant in Ironman 70.3 Barcelona

Emma Pallant took a back to back victory in IM70.3 Barcelona. The BMC-Vifit Sport athlete dominated the closing half marathon to defend her title successfully in a winning time of 4:32:54.

Strong performance

A solid swim for Emma Pallant to start the race. She entered T1 in 5th place, 2’ behind the lead. In the early stages of the bike, she halved that gap and moved up to 3rd place. Emma kept going strong to take over the lead of the race with 20k to go. Counting on her amazing strong running legs, she saved some energy in the final kilometres of the bike to start the run in 2nd position, with only 30” deficit over Pedersen in front of her. That didn’t take long as Pallant took over the lead in the first kilometre of the closing half marathon. From that point on, the BMC-Vifit Sport athlete put the hammer down and never looked back. She posted a 1:20:50 half marathon time, once again the fastest running split of the day.

Afterwards Emma Pallant was over the moon with her result. “I am really happy with my win today. It hasn’t been the most ideal way to start the season after having to withdraw from the race in IM South Africa. I had a really good training block with the team in Mallorca and today it all paid off. I am super happy to take the win today.”

Bart Aernouts makes team success complete with a very strong 3rd place finish

Bart Aernouts finished 3rd in the men’s race. The Belgian posted the fastest bike split of the day. He crossed the line in a time of 4:06:40. Jamier Gomez (SPA; 4:01:39) won the race and saw David McNamee (GBR; 4:04:46) take 2nd.Bart Aernouts exited the water in 16th position, 3’40 back of leader Gomez. Once on the bike, Bart immediately found his fantastic bike legs. In the first 20k, he moved up to 8th place, but he still wasn’t done. Aernouts kept pushing hard on the bike and before the halfway point, he had closed the gap to McNamee in 2nd. Together with the Scotsman, Bart went after Gomez trying to close the gap. After posting an incredibly fast bike split of 2:22:05 (fastest bike split by more than 3’), the Belgian started the run in 3rd place. Giving everything on the bike, Bart consolidated his podium place and crossed the line in 3rd in 4:06:40.

Looking back after the race Bart Aernouts felt very satisfied. “I am glad with my performance today. I took a risk on the bike, by charging through the field and by trying to close the gap towards Gomez as much as possible. But I felt great, so I went for it. On the run, I didn’t have the best feeling. I felt I used a lot of energy on the bike, so I chose to control and consolidate my 3rd place. Finishing on the podium in this stacked field, is a good result, but there are still some points of improvement. I want to continue working on my swim and run over the coming weeks, but I am very happy with my current shape at this point in the season.

Looking back after the race Bart Aernouts felt very satisfied. “I am glad with my performance today. I took a risk on the bike, by charging through the field and by trying to close the gap towards Gomez as much as possible. But I felt great, so I went for it. On the run, I didn’t have the best feeling. I felt I used a lot of energy on the bike, so I chose to control and consolidate my 3rd place. Finishing on the podium in this stacked field, is a good result, but there are still some points of improvement. I want to continue working on my swim and run over the coming weeks, but I am very happy with my current shape at this point in the season.